You'll See
by CatCunning
Summary: Clark wakes Chloe in the middle of the night. Why? You'll see. OneShot
1. Version One Incomplete

Cat: Hey all! This was a bit of fluff with just occurred to me. You can read it as either "Clark and Chloe are friends" or as Chlark if you like (I do). Unfortunately I couldn't decide how I wanted to start, so there are two beginnings. The first chapter has the first opening. I think it's better written, but it feels darker (which is not the mood that I wanted). The second chapter is much lighter, a bit funnier, etc. However, the dialogue and action is exactly the same. I would appreciate it if you would read both and tell me which you liked better, but if you want to just read one that's fine with me.

**Disclaimer: Not mine. You can ask my mommy, she'll agree with me. **

The night was almost entirely silent. Winter's chill had quieted the insects and a prediction of snow had forced most drivers off of the roads and home to their families. However, there was one person awake and aware that night. He'd parked his car out front and left it running. It was the singular warm place on the desolate street but the driver had abandoned it to cautiously mount old stairs.

As he opened the inner door he was met with a room that glowed. The neon lights outside illuminated everything that lived there, casting their lives into unnatural colors. But this person didn't need that light to guide him to the bed; he was very familiar with the room and with its solitary occupant. His boots thundered against the quietness and excitement beat through his veins.

She slept on her side, one bare shoulder exposed in the blue and red pallor. A calloused hand fit around her muscled arm and shook a bit as he called to her. "Chloe?"

Her eyes jumped open and a small shriek echoed in the room. The man, as startled as she was, started backwards a bit, relinquishing his grip automatically. However, a moment later he began to chuckle softly.

"Geeze, Clark." Chloe grumbled, recognizing both the laugh and the shape of his nose in the semi-darkness. Clark laughed a bit more, old tensions falling away in the presence of his best friend. To contrast him Chloe continued to snipe. "Give a girl a heart attack."

Clark sobered a bit as he was instantly reminded of why he'd come. "You'll thank me later, Chlo." He assured her.

In that moment a thousand horrible scenarios assailed her mind. There were a thousand reasons why Clark could be waking her in the middle of the night, though none of them inspired confidence or joy.

She threw back her covers and Clark couldn't help but notice that the shorts she'd worn to bed were unintentionally high up on her thighs, showing more skin then he'd even seen from her. He tore his eyes upwards and was suddenly uncomfortably aware that Chloe only wore a tank top to bed and that it was cold in that room. His face reddened, and he hoped that she couldn't see it.

"Why? What's up?" Her concerns filled her voice, pouring into Clark's ears and he felt a familiar guilt. He'd made her worry again even though he'd come there with a surprise that was intended to excite her.

He responded by intentionally adding humor to his tone, implying calm and expressing anticipation instead of fear. "You'll see."

"See what?" The response was automatic, almost unintentional. Chloe had wanted answers to the world for as long as she could remember. Secrets were meant to be discovered. She crossed her arms over her chest, accentuating her seriousness and challenging the man who'd had the gall to wake her up.

Clark saw her standing there and couldn't help but tease her a bit. "You'll see." He repeated. She scrunched up her face at him in distaste and Clark took some pity on her. "Get your coat." He nodded towards the closet. He was eager to show her the surprise, but also knew better than to take her outside in her pajamas.

"Clark," Clark almost flinched and the serious challenge in her tone. Chloe was going to be stubborn about this trip; he knew it at that very moment. All his hopes of quietly escorting her in stunned silence were bashed. Surprisingly though, Clark wasn't at all saddened by that. Chloe was more fun when she was loud.

"Where are we going?" She demanded firmly. Clark met her gaze evenly. He let the tension between them spread for a momentary age. Like ripples in a pond it filled the entire room with heat and the both of them just stood there. Eventually Clark decided that she'd suffered enough and responded.

"You'll see." Chloe sighed, the loud exhale only adding to the humor of the moment. She fumbled awkwardly in her closet, the darkness that continued to perforate the room flooding the corners and small places and impairing her vision.

Clark watched her carefully and wondered if he'd gone too far. After all, he had woken her up and nearly given her a heart attack in the process. Then he'd conjured up mental images of friends in labs and meteor freaks and other horrible Smallvillian incidents. While that had all been unintentional, he had purposely defeated her at her own challenge. Clark knew Chloe better than anyone and right then he was quietly regretting that he hadn't gotten her a cup of coffee first. "You'll like it." He promised over her shoulder.

Chloe jammed her foot into a shoe without responding to him and Clark spent a moment utterly terrified that she was angry with him. Chloe was glaring down at her feet, too impatient to both with untying the laces. Her heel was sore from where she was trying to slid it into the other shoe while she mentally debated how best to get back at Clark. It was better if she got her revenge quickly. Then they could be even and just enjoy whatever was happening.

She stood and Clark rushed to the door. She tried to hide her amusement and pleasure as he opened it for her and ushered her through. His impersonation of a butler was astounding and clearly a pure accident.

As she was passing through the doorway she briefly considered forgiving him just because he was acting like such a gentleman. Her demonic side got the better of her and she rounded on him.

She was much shorter than Clark, but the height difference was almost unnoticeable when she was trying to look taller and he was slouching. If she openly turned her head to meet his eye she was reduced in appearance by several inches, and if she was going to win this challenge she couldn't do that. Therefore when both of them were standing in the cramped door frame she ended up staring directly at his lips.

"It's 3 o'clock in the morning." She announced sternly. She saw him tense in surprise and continued happily. "This had better be good." At that point she passed to the other side of the door, turning halfway around on the stairs to meet his gaze. He was left completely speechless by her unexpected statement and she grinned at him.

Clark found himself in a daze as he entered the car. It was not the first time that he had silently marveled at the powers that Chloe held over him; however, it felt different this time. He should have foreseen that the curious reporter would not tolerate him keeping secrets from her. He couldn't blame her for that, not after she had been forced to discover his bigger secret alone.

**Cat: See second chapter for the exciting conclusion….**


	2. The Complete Story

Cat: Hey all! Here's the second version. This one is complete and yes, you do actually get to find out what the surprise is. Sorry if this is all too confusing.

**Disclaimer: Still not mine. You can still ask my mommy, she'll still agree with me. **

Chloe Sullivan rarely screamed. After surviving countless explosions, numerous murderous boyfriends, and several assassins Chloe had learned not to panic. She also gained a considerable amount of bravery from her best friend and frequent protector, Clark Kent. As an uber-powerful alien, Clark had saved her from everything including a guy who tried to steal her body heat and a missile powerful enough to annihilate all of Smallville.

However, when something woke Chloe in the dark security of her apartment she gave a small shriek on reflex. It was a moment before she could discern the owner of the dark shape that hovered over her bed. A soft laugh escaped from the person and Chloe made a face at him.

"Geeze, Clark." She grumbled, propping herself up on her elbows. "Give a girl a heart attack."

"You'll thank me later, Chlo." He assured her, stepping back and flicking on the light switch. Clark watched her blink away the brightness with a hint of inner satisfaction. If he wanted her in motion at the late (or technically early) hour then he needed to rouse her curiosity. When his best friend chose to speak to him rather than go back to bed, he knew that he'd been successful.

"Why? What's up?" Even though she wasn't entirely awake yet, her voice carried concern. With 33.1 out to capture meteor freaks like her, a team of their friends out in the world somewhere trying to destroy the laboratories of the exceptionally vengeful Lex Luthor, and an unknown number of Kryptonian criminals freed from their maximum security prison it was not comforting to be woken in the middle of the night.

"You'll see." His voice was mischievous, not fearful or nervous which released any concern Chloe might have felt for his safety. She strode across the cool floor to stand with her arms across her chest in an appropriately challenging manner.

"See what?"

Clark grinned at her. "You'll see." He repeated. He watched her stick her tongue in her cheek. She always did when she was trying to think. "Get your coat." He indicated the closet with a slight nod.

"Clark," She said suspiciously, "where are we going?" Clark retorted with his now traditional response.

"You'll see." He laughed this time and Chloe stood there for a moment, debating mentally if it was worth it to argue. Clark didn't move either, he just watched her with his blue eyes bright. The lights from the neon sign outside reflected off his face, giving it an odd glow that was almost unseen in the florescent brightness of the overhead light. He watched her expectantly, trying not to laugh at how stubborn she was being. Finally she heaved a sigh and moved to the closet.

"You'll like it." He promised as she pulled on the requested coat. She slammed her feet into a pair of shoes without untying them instead of responding. Clark smiled again, obviously pleased with himself.

He yanked open the apartment door and waved Chloe down the stairs. He held the door for her as she passed, but she stopped unexpectedly in the doorframe. She turned to him, his slightly startled face just above hers.

"It's 3 o'clock in the morning." She informed him sternly. "This had better be good." Clark didn't respond and Chloe continued outside and slipped into the passenger's side of the waiting truck. Clark threw himself into the driver's seat, still wondering how he could have gone from dominating the situation to being threatened in such a short time.

Chloe stared purposefully out the window during the drive, watching the darkened stores roll past and trying to predict their location. Once she glanced towards Clark. Their eyes had met and he'd given her that same look, like a puppy who'd hidden the day's newspaper instead of fetching it. He had something planned and if he didn't tell her what it was she was probably going to explode with curiosity.

"Oh my god, Clark." She breathed suddenly, breaking the amicable silence. "Are we going to the caves?" Their eyes met again. Clark tried hard to keep a straight face but failed anyway and glanced quickly back out the windshield to keep from spilling his guts. Chloe was a hard person to lie to. Besides being a reporter who was paid to get people to tell things they wouldn't normally, Clark trusted her completely. He told her everything, sometimes unintentionally.

"You'll see." He said finally. Chloe leaned forwards in her seat, trying to catch his eye again. She knew that she was right—Clark was a terrible liar.

"Is this about your Fortress?" She asked earnestly. A bit of the fun had drained from her guessing, replaced by the knowledge that whatever he was about to show her was something he couldn't show anyone else. He could need her help with an alien-type problem or something equally intimate and serious. "Did something break?" There was another slight pause as something worse occurred to her. "Did someone else get in?"

"No, Chloe." Clark answered, with more seriousness than he'd shown all night. He was slightly startled by the notion that she was worried about him. He should've known, of course, he admonished himself mentally. Anyone woken up in the middle of the night by an urgent friend in Smallville would assume the very worst. "It's nothing like that." He continued, trying to be reassuring. He'd never been very good at that. Back in high school when Chloe had gotten scared he'd just held her until she stopped shaking, murmuring something awkward that he hoped would comfort her. He couldn't hug her like that anymore—at least, not without an excuse like he'd had Dark Thursday.

That had been nice, he recalled wistfully. He'd heard that car coming and had just grabbed her. And they'd stood there a moment, even after they both knew that they were safe. They just stood there and he could feel her heart beating against his. It was just moments after that when she'd kissed him….

Clark readjusted his hands on there steering wheel, suddenly feeling slightly awkward. "And you should just stop guessing." He advised. "You'll never guess it."

"What? Is it some kind of top-secret super-hero meeting?" Clark gave no indication that he'd heard her. Instead he flipped off the ignition and sauntered into the cave, Chloe jogging a little to keep up. "Did you get something cool up there, like, you know, a fridge or a TV or something?" She continued guessing. Clark continued ignoring her. "Is it a party? Is there a keg?" This finally managed to wrangle a response from him. He turned to her, face scrunched up in a combination of curiosity and confusion. "Okay, no keg." Chloe said, correctly interpreting the glance.

"Seriously, Clark." She said as the two circled the hidden back room. She leaned up against the center table as she spoke, covering the keyhole and preventing him from transporting them to the Fortress. "You know this is killing me." He smiled at her again. It wasn't the secretive smiles of before, but an open smile. He was enjoying frustrating her, and Chloe knew it. "Why won't you just tell me?"

"Because your guesses are hysterical." He answered honestly.

"Okay!" She was shouting in exasperation now and her voice was magnified by both the echoing cave and the still night. "So it wasn't a keg!" Clark laughed openly now, which only frustrated her more. "Quit laughing at me!"

Clark cleared his throat in an attempt to regain his self control. He pursed his lips together, forcefully preventing further laughter and resulting in a face so ridiculous that Chloe struggled with giggles herself. "Button up your coat." He advised, deciding to take refuge in chatter as a method of further preventing laughter. He enjoyed teasing Chloe, but he didn't want to push too far. Besides, if she yelled in the Fortress it could ruin everything. "There's a blizzard going on up there."

Chloe frown again, intentionally exaggerating her look of suspicion. "Did you bring me here to shovel snow?" It took Clark a moment to realize that she was teasing him and he dutifully retaliated.

"You'll see." He took her upper arm, pulling her to a standing position beside him and unblocking the location for the key. He didn't recognize the way that his touch effectively silenced Chloe and he unconsciously kept his hand on her arm. If he'd noticed he would've been epically embarrassed, however, he just calmly inserted the key.

There was the traditional and expected bright light and then Chloe felt the temperature drop. When her vision cleared they were in the doorway to the Fortress.

Behind them the blizzard wailed, wind and snow warring against anything and everything that might have been caught beyond the safety of the icy cavern. It was dark behind them; they were about halfway through the days in winter when the sun literally didn't shine. However, the Fortress glowed with a faint orange light, just as it always did. Despite the chill it was somehow cozy.

Clark was nearly shaking with anticipation. Chloe was finally about to discover his surprise and he couldn't wait to see her face. He glanced down at her and was surprised to find that she was watching him and not desperately searching the room for his secret. "Clark?" Her voice was serious and momentarily stilled his excitement. For a moment he wondered if she was going to ask about Lana, but then he caught her eyes. They glimmered with excitement and discovery and he instantly relaxed.

"Do you have a new power?" Clark couldn't suppress a smile. It was a serious guess, but she was still wrong. Chloe seemed to interpret his silence as agreement and continued with her trademark curious glance. "Can you fly?"

"Shhh." He said, a finger over his lips (which was yet another desperate attempt to stop himself from laughing). His hand, still on her arm, guided her forward. "See for yourself." He said finally and Chloe's eyes flicked away from him, searching the cavernous ceiling. Her eyes traveled downwards and her breath caught in her chest.

Nestled under the beam of a collection of slanting ice was a polar bear. A dark nose surrounded by yellowish fur was curled innocently on the floor, two more tiny noses poking out of their mother's warmth. The babies were much smaller than their mother but were almost indistinguishable from her. The three blended together in a ball of ragged fur.

"Well?" Clark asked in a whisper.

"You're right. I would've never guessed it." She replied, eyes not moving from the family. She could see their breathing now; it pulsed under them in a slight motion.

"Better than a keg?" He asked mischievously, still smiling. He was just watching her and couldn't help swelling with pride and happiness. Chloe laughed a little, but not much. Clark understood; she was caught in the same wonder that had transfixed him when he'd stumbled in to find them.

"They must've come in as shelter from the storm." He explained, voice still soft.

Chloe just hummed a bit in response. She was suddenly aware that his mouth was so close to her ear that she could feel his warm breath. And his hand still encircled her arm, fingers cupped around it so gently despite his strength.

Clark wasn't sure why she didn't respond, but decide that it didn't really matter. He was happy and she was happy and the bears were happy.

Outside the blizzard continued to batter the world and inside there was quiet.

**Cat: R and R if you please!**


End file.
